Sasa Obradovic’s second term in the technical leadership of Monaco started ideally, with the Serbian coach leading his team in double at the headquarters of Zalgiris (98-107 in overtime).
Something like that the “Cinderella” of the event returned to victories after 5 consecutive defeats and went up to 6-9. Leading for the winners are James (20 points, 14 assists, 5 rebounds), Bacon (19 points) and Diallo (13 points).
On the other, the team of Kaunas fell to 3-12 and remains at the bottom of the standings. Distinguished for the Lithuanians are Strelnieks (22 points with 5/7 three points), Milaknis (19 points with 5/7 three points) and Nimbo (14 points, 9 rebounds).
The match
In the first minutes both teams kept pace in the score (11-11 in 5 ‘), with Zalgiris to find solutions in the face of Kalnietis. With James and Motiejounas accelerating aggressively, Monaco closed the first ten minutes with a short header (21-22).
At the start of the 2nd period, the hosts took a small lead (29-26 in 12 ‘), however they did not enjoy it for long. This is because Obradovic’s players pressed the accelerator and with a 9-0 series turned the situation upside down (29-35 in 15 ‘). The answer of the Lithuanians came with a partial 10-3 (39-38 in 17 ‘), but again the guests found solutions, mainly near the racket (with Hall and Thomas): so they closed the half with “air” of 5 points (43 -48).
The 3rd quarter had a completely different form, with Zalgiris shooting outside the 6.75m. With Strelnieks shooting from… everywhere, Zdovch’s team turned it around (56-53 in 23 ‘). The “cinderella” of the tournament reversed the situation to its detriment (58-59 in 27 ‘), however the Lithuanians completely dominated in the final of the season and escaped with +9 (70-61).
James and Diallo masterfully guided Monaco at the start of the 4th quarter and tied (72-72 in 33 ‘). With big shots from Bacon, the guests gained a lead… victory (85-90 in 37 ‘), at a time when the hosts seemed blocked.
In the last minutes the match was led to the “roulette” of shots, with Gray having 1/2 in 8 seconds for 93-95. The Lithuanians had the last word in the game and with a foul by Ulanovas they tied at 95-95 and sent the game to extra time.
In the extra five minutes, Obradovic’s players appeared much more focused and cool, while they ran a series of 6-0 (95-101 in 43 ‘) and laid the foundations for their victory. On the opposite bank, Zalgiris did not have the mental resources to react and fatally surrendered to Monaco (98-107).
The quarters: 21-22, 43-48, 70-61, 95-95, 98-107 (par.).
See the match statistics here
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